Pressure Is On For Nisbett

Pressure Is On For Nisbett

With experience and home advantage on his side, the pressure's on SKY TV rugby commentator Grant Nisbett to win the Telecom Virtual Rugby competition which kicks off this weekend.

Nisbett will need mental stamina to cope with the pressure of more than 100 games over 13 weeks, but he reckons this might just be his season.

The official New Zealand Rugby Union competition sees Nisbett and his fellow celebrity Rugbyheads; TV3's John Campbell, SKY TV's Tony Johnson and Melodie Robinson and thousands of other rugby fans, select the winning margins of each team during the Air New Zealand Cup and AA Rewards Heartland Championship.

"It could be my opportunity to steal the march. The other Rugbyheads will most likely be at the World Cup. They won't have a clue about what's going on back here in New Zealand and I'll be keeping a close eye on the matches. I reckon I've got a good shot."

Johnson's money is on Nisbett.

"He's been around for such a long time, much longer than the rest of us so he should win," he says.

The Rugbyheads' rugby knowledge is on display each week for the New Zealand public, which Johnson finds "routinely embarrassing".

"When you do get it right people say, 'of course you should have' and when you don't they say things like, 'even my seven-year-old daughter picked that right.'"

Rivalry is a huge part of the attraction of the online game which saw more than 155,000 rugby fans register for the last Telecom Virtual Rugby competition.

New Zealand Rugby Union Commercial Manager Fraser Holland says it's a fantastic way for fans to be involved without having to lace up their boots.

"Telecom Virtual Rugby adds an extra edge to the onfield competitions, with fans feeling more involved and bragging rights at stake. Monday morning is often about scrutinising family and friends' point tallies and strategising for the coming weekend," he says.

While Nisbett may be favourite to take out the celebrity Rugbyheads competition, he's wary of being over-confident.

"I hope people out there don't take too much notice of my picks or we might all be down the gurgler," he says.

This season's competition features a new Auto-Challenge option where players can automatically set up challenges among people with the same email extension. This will allow people from the same company to easily pit their wits against each other.

Telecom's Melody McGinley says the Auto-Challenge is like an extended Mates list, and is sure to create new rivalries among workmates.

"This new challenge will up the ante and spark new debates and maybe friendships among players who share a workplace but didn't know they shared a passion for rugby," she says.

Telecom have also added a new feature for players with xtra.co.nz email addresses. They will automatically go into the Xtra challenge and can keep track of their progress on the Xtra leader board with the chance to win some great prizes.

Along with bragging rights, the winner of Air New Zealand Cup and AA Rewards Heartland Championship season of Telecom Virtual Rugby will win a trip for two flying Air New Zealand's new direct route to Vancouver, Canada, and a replica of the Air New Zealand Cup trophy. The top ten place getters will also receive a Telecom Sanyo M1 mobile phone.

Nisbett and Johnson have some words of wisdom for fans; never change your picks once you've made them.

Players can register at www.telecomvirtualrugby.co.nz

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